Mauritius January – July 2013, Rodrigues, Ile Aux Cocos

The other major place of interest for birders in Rodrigues is Iles aux Cocos, not because it hosts any endemics, but because several thousand terns breed here. The current estimate lies around 45.000. Sooty Terns, Common White Terns, Common Noddies and Lesser Noddies use this island and the neighbouring Iles aux Sables year round to breed and rest. Although they have a peak from September to November. We however visited in June and still saw plenty of individuals of both species with ease. When visiting in the arctic winter however, much more waders will be around than the single Whimbrel we observed.

Sooty Tern (Onychoprion fuscatus)

Adult Lesser Noddy (Anous tenuirostris)

Juvenile Lesser Noddy (Anous tenuirostris)

Adult Brown Noddy (Anous stolidus)

Juvenile Brown Noddy (Anous stolidus)

Lesser Noddies  (Anous tenuirostris) and one Brown Noddy  (Anous stolidus) allowing good comparison

Adult Common White (or Fairy) Tern (Gygis alba)

Juvenile Common White Tern (Gygis alba) (note the dark spot behind the eye)

Video of a inquisitive juvenile Common White Tern (Gygis alba) (made by Anna van der Kaaden)

Iles aux Cocos is open for public and can be reached by a one hour boat ride from Baie du Nord. Be prepared to wade the last few km to the islet, for the waters are very shallow around it. Several boat men and tour packages are available and a list of all boat men can be obtained in the tourist office in Port Mathurin. We used James (002308750557) from Rodrigues Vacances and paid 1.000 MRU including landing fee, lunch, drinks, pick-up and drop-off. We found this to be a fair price and were happy to pay this for the tern spectacle, which I didn´t want to miss. 

Mauritius January – July 2013, Rodrigues, Grande Montagne Nature Reserve

The Island of Rodrigues, roughly 600 km east of Mauritius, once hosted a myriad of endemics. Unfortunately these all suffered the same fate as most birds on Mauritius. There however more birds survived, barely, than in Rodrigues. Currently four native land vertebrates are left: Rodrigues Fruit Bat, Rodrigues Warbler, Rodrigues Fody and Mourning Gecko. The last one is the only species that is not endemic. The three endemic species can be seen in the forested valleys in the centre of the island, although the fruit bat wanders during the night and can also be observed near the coast.

One of those valleys is Grande Montagne Nature Reserve. MWF Rodrigues has done a marvellous job here in replanting rare and endemic plants to recreate the original forests. The forest looks so good that you can imagine Rodrigues Solitaires walking around here in past times. During our two hour visit to this nature reserve we managed to see both endemic bird species with ease. It was a shame though that the male fodies were in the non-breeding plumage and not in the bright yellow breeding plumage (they are in non-breeding plumage from March to August). On the other hand it was a much more interesting identification challenge. The Rodrigues Fodies have a subtle yellowish wash on their throat and breast and their mantle and scapulars have a chestnut tinge. They also have a shorter tail. Off course their behaviour is very different from the Madagascar Fodies, but I found that the non-breeding Rodrigues Fodies are definitely identifiable on plumage as well. Next to the birds, we saw several Rodrigues Fruit Bats flapping over near Solitude at the MWF Office.

Juvenile Rodrigues Fody (Foudia flavicans)

Rodrigues Warbler (Acrocephalus rodericanus)

Rodrigues Warbler (Acrocephalus rodericanus)

Rodrigues Fruit Bat (Pteropus rodricensis)

The Grande Montagne Nature Reserve is open and free for public and all trails start at the Louis Dominique Farla Information Centre. Here you can also have a look at the bones of the extinct Rodrigues Solitaire and Doomed Tortoise. The information centre can be reached by the Port Mathurin – Point Coton or the Port Mathurin – Grande Montagne bus. Just ask the drivers to drop you there, it is just next to the road. Guides are not necessary, but it might be interesting to phone the MWF Rodrigues (002308314558) in advance, for they are happy to show you around and they have vast knowledge about the local fauna and flora. They might also show you their plant nursery in Solitude where they propagate rare and endemic plants. We enjoyed their company and their knowledge a lot and highly recommend them.